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Kangaroo
Intro Kangaroos are an animal most commonly known for hopping around and their pouches. Although these two components are crucial ones to their evolution and behavior, there is much more to these animals to be explored. More specifically, the Eastern Grey kangaroo is the most commonly talked about species of kangaroo. They are found in Southern and Eastern Australia and have a population of several million. They can grow to be 7 ft tall and around 120 pounds. First Steps When a kangaroo first comes into the world, it is less that a gram in weight. These babies are still in a state that would typically be found in an egg or a fetal state with some sort of protection. Kangaroos stay in the womb for such a short a mount of time because of their lack of placenta. The newborn “Joey” kangaroo is instead raised in its mothers pouch. When it is born the baby’s arms are just strong enough to feel and climb its way up its mothers fur to her pouch. This instinctual behavior is lead by the smell of the pouch attracting the Joey. Once inside the baby feeds from its mothers teat for about nine months. After nine months has elapsed the Joey is ready to come into the real world but returns to the pouch often. If the mother is mates again which a joey is still in her pouch, she has the ability to freeze the embryo until her pouch is free. Growing Up A joey stays with its mother at all times during the early stages in it’s life. The mother provides it food and safety while still in her pouch. Even when out of the pouch, the mother will usually teach the joey how to find food. After about two years, male offspring leave their mothers. Female offspring often stay with a mother for longer for more protection and extended benefits. Home The Eastern Grey kangaroo can live in a variety of habitat across Eastern Australia. Their habitats can be within forests, grasslands or woodlands. Because of their diet (green grasses high in protein) they try to stay away from dry areas because of their difficulty digesting dry grass. Their diet has a large effect on the habitat they are in. Power In each group of kangaroos (a “mob”) there is what’s called a boomer. This is a dominant male that has access to essentially all the females in the mob. Boxing is also used for many things such as dominance, playing, winning a female, or fighting for food. These fights include the entire body typically, however some larger male kangaroos are especially muscular. Their forepaws are extremely useful for this boxing. When used, they can be used like a human’s for punching, clawing and grappling. The hind legs are also extremely powerful and can be used to take down an opponent. Some larger kangaroos have extremely sharp nails. These have been used to disembowel opponents, which is one of many reasons fighting with boomers can be so fatal. Courtship and Reproduction Kangaroos don’t mate for life, and their courtship rituals are relatively simple. Typically, a male will “check” a female’s cloaca before mating. During this check, a female sometimes urinates. The male then sniffs the urine until it is content, and then proceeds to mate with the female. The checking process is used to ensure that the female is receptive to the male. If the females is ready, the male usually moves on. If her heat is beginning he will persue her. Sometimes after this check a female will reject a male due to his inferior size. A raised tail is often a “green light” for kangaroos when mating. The male will usually grasp a females tail. This is also sometimes followed by a clucking sound. Although this sound is common when mating, it can be found during other circumstances. Parenthood Most females or “does” spend almost all of their life bearing children. It is their sole purpose. Females typically have an embryo in the womb, a joey in her pouch and a young one outside at all times. Most males have very little involvement in raising joeys. Females feed the children, and teaching them survival methods. This includes finding food and sometimes how to box. Females can somehow determine the sex of a joey, how they do this is unknown. However, females wait until later in life to produce males. This is because they are more taxing to produce and often leave sooner.